Editor's note: The below article contains spoilers for the first three episodes of Ms. Marvel.When Ms. Marvel first started unveiling trailers, one thing stood out to comic book fans: the major change in its heroine's powers. Instead of her polymorph abilities, Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) has the power to generate hard light constructs, which are unlocked when she puts on a bangle that belonged to her great-grandmother Aisha. In the latest episode, "Destined," Kamala learns that Aisha was a member of a race of interdimensional beings known as the ClanDestine. But that wasn't the only deep ties to comics canon, as it's revealed that Kamala's bangle has a matching counterpart. A similar pair of artifacts exist in Marvel Comics canon, and they're called the Nega-Bands.
The Nega-Bands were crafted by the Kree Empire, and give their users immense powers. Whoever wears the bands has the ability to transform their mental energy into physical and/or pure energy. Some use the Bands to augment their strength and durability to superhuman levels. Others can use them to teleport or create energy blasts. The bands have been worn by many figures in the Marvel Universe, most notably the original Captain Marvel Mar-Vell and his children Genis and Phyla-Vell. Genis would eventually take up his father's mantle, while Phyla's joined forces with the Guardians of the Galaxy. They were even melted down to form a set of rings for Mar-Vell's son Theodore "Teddy" Altman and his husband Billy Kaplan — better known as the Young Avengers Hulking and Wiccan — during their wedding.
The first hints at the origins of the Nega-Bands are revealed in the opening of "Destined." During a period of time in British-occupied India, the ClanDestine were looking for the bangle that Kamala wears, and they find it on a severed arm — that happens to be a rich blue in color. All the Kree have blue-hued skin, and given the events of Captain Marvel it's more than likely that the Kree have visited Earth at various points in time during its history. The ClanDestine's leader Najma (Nimra Bucha) also hints at their potential power by saying that Kamala's bangle is their only way home — and her friend Bruno Carrelli (Matt Lintz) later confirms this, saying that Kamala needs to generate the power of the sun in order to help the ClanDestine get home.
In fact, another huge hint that Kamala is in possession of a Nega-Band happens during the second episode, "Crushed." While working with Bruno to gain a foothold on her abilities, Kamala mentions that her hard-light constructs "feel like dreams come to life." Given that the Nega-Bands are powered by their user's mental energy, it only makes sense that Kamala's would take the shape of her thoughts. Not only do her constructs pay homage to her original powers — especially one that's a giant glowing hand — but they also tap into Kamala's creative nature as she's a daydreamer at heart.
Kamala using the Nega-Bands may also give her a closer connection to her superhero idol Carol Danvers (Brie Larson). In the comics, Mar-Vell was responsible for bestowing powers upon Carol and transforming her into Captain Marvel. The same holds true for the Captain Marvel movie, though Mar-Vell is now a woman (and played by Annette Bening), her work with the Cosmic Cube leads to Carol being bathed in its energy and gaining superpowers. With The Marvels set to have Kamala and Monica Rambeau/Spectrum (Teyonah Parris) meeting Carol, it'll be interesting to see how their dynamic works — and if the Kree will play a role in the process, as Kamala might have one of their most powerful weapons.
The first three episodes of Ms. Marvel are available right now on Disney+. New episodes are released weekly, every Wednesday.